Louis Armstrong: A Poor New Orleans Boy… Then His Trumpet Made the World Smile
As a poor boy in New Orleans, Louis Armstrong sang on the street for coins. In a home for boys, a teacher gave him a cornet — and he became the king of jazz. Learn five A2 words with the true story of Louis Armstrong.
Transcript
Tap a time to jump to that moment. Highlighted words have a meaning: tap them. Words in bold show today's grammar.
A poor boy sang on the street for a few coins.
Then, in a home for boys, a teacher gave him a horn.
What would he do with it?
This is the story of Louis Armstrong.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
. A is music with words.
You sing a .
As a boy, he sang on the street.
. A is a group of people who play music together.
He became the leader of the .
. A is a metal instrument.
You blow into it to make music.
He played the all over the world.
. is a kind of music.
It started in New Orleans, in America.
Louis Armstrong changed .
. A is the happy look on your face when your mouth goes up.
People loved his big .
Now, one pattern: adverbs.
They tell us how we do something.
Happy becomes happily.
Loud becomes loudly.
He played loudly and happily.
Ready? Let's begin.
Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans in 1901.
His family was very poor.
As a boy, he sold from a cart.
He sang on the street with his friends.
A kind Jewish family, the Karnofskys, gave him work.
He blew a little tin horn to call people.
He wore a Star of David all his life to remember them.
On New Year's Eve, when he was eleven, he got into trouble.
He was sent to a home for boys.
There, a teacher gave him a , a small .
Louis practised carefully.
Soon he played beautifully.
He became the leader of the .
One day in 1913, the boys' marched through his old street.
Louis was at the front.
He played loudly and proudly.
His neighbours ran out of their houses.
They cheered. They gave money to the .
Later, he played in a famous in Chicago.
He sang too.
Once, he said, he dropped the paper with the words.
So he happily sang sounds instead.
People loved it!
Louis Armstrong changed .
He played the all over the world.
In 1956, in Ghana, more than 100,000 people came to hear him.
He played loudly and happily.
In 1964, at 62, his "Hello, Dolly!" took the top place from the Beatles!
He died in 1971, but his still bring around the world.
Let's review. As a boy, he sang on the street.
He became the leader of the .
He played the all over the world.
Louis Armstrong changed .
People loved his big .
And remember: he played loudly and happily.
Louis Armstrong's story teaches us: share your , and the whole world will with you.
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Step 3
Words from the story
Say the word, guess its meaning, then flip the card. Keep the ones you know, and practise the rest again.
Great work, you know every word in this story. Now try the quiz below.
song noun
music with words that you sing
“As a boy, he sang songs on the street.”
band noun
a group of people who play music together
“He became the leader of the band.”
trumpet noun
a metal instrument you blow into to make music
“He played the trumpet all over the world.”
jazz noun
a kind of music that started in New Orleans; people often dance to it
“Louis Armstrong changed jazz.”
smile noun / verb
the happy look on your face when your mouth goes up
“People loved his big smile.”
cornet noun
a small brass instrument, like a short trumpet
“A teacher gave him a cornet.”
coal noun
a hard black stone that people burn to make heat
“As a boy, he sold coal from a cart.”
joy noun
great happiness
“His songs still bring joy around the world.”
Grammar in the story
adjective + -ly = adverb of manner
We use it for: to say how someone does something
- happy → happily
- loud → loudly
- careful → carefully
- beautiful → beautifully
From the story
- He played loudly and smiled happily.
- Louis practised carefully every day.
Find it in the story 9 times
Your turn
Louis practised every day.
Soon he played .
Louis played at the front of the band.
Step 4
Story Challenge
9 quick rounds: choose, fill the gap, build the sentence and match the words. Answer in a row to build a streak and earn bonus points.
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Take it further
Before you watch: What kind of music do you like? Do you play an instrument? Who is your favourite singer?
After you watch: Write three sentences about how you do things, with -ly adverbs. For example: I speak English slowly. My sister sings beautifully. My dad drives carefully.
Think about it: Louis Armstrong was very poor, but people remember his big smile and his joy. Can music make people happy when life is hard? Which song makes you happy?
